Pink Lemonade
by Mini Oreo
Summary: Oneshot. Pink for her hair, lemonade for his yellow hair. A cute date night in the lives of Sakura Haruno and Naruto Uzumaki. She wants to focus on Naruto, but she keeps thinking of another... Narusaku.


A/N: Well, this is a story of me getting kinda sidetracked from my other stories. I'm on vacation at my grandma's house and I can't get to my current chapters for two weeks, so I'm gonna TRY and do something useful.

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A girl with unusually pink hair walked down the pleasantly calm street, not a care in the world. Her green eyes showed that that was a totally lie. There was something she was worried about. Haruno Sakura wasn't the type to just take a walk. She was walking to her first date ever. Amazing that she hasn't gone on a date yet—she's nearly 16! 

_Why am I doing this?_ she thought to herself. _Going on a date with Naruto-kun? I must be crazy._ And maybe she was. But she never let anyone see the crazy side of her. That was why they called her emotions 'Inner' Sakura. Not outer.

On her walk, she finally reached her destination. The cherry blossom tree a block away from the ninja academy. She gazed longingly at it, remembering all the times she and Ino-chan fought over Sasuke-kun and all the times she yelled at Naruto-kun. She also remembered the day after the whole of team 6 had passed the Chunin exam when Naruto-kun walked up to her at the door and asked her out. She'd realized she'd never have Sasuke-kun, and decided to give Naruto-kun a chance. So she's said yes.

That was three days ago. Now she was here, waiting for him to arrive. She'd left about 10 minutes earlier. Not to show Naruto-kun he was late, but to make sure she could spend every moment possible with him. She hadn't realized how much she'd fallen for him over the past four years. She didn't think she'd ever go out with him…now here she was, waiting for him for their first date.

_Wonder if this'll work out or not…_ she thought. _I don't want this relationship to end before it even starts. It was painful enough getting over Sasuke-kun._

"Sakura-chan!" someone called. Sakura whipped around to see a tall 16-year old running towards her. Even though she saw him every day, Sakura was _still_ surprised at how much he'd changed over the years. His hair was still the same, shorter and spiked, but he'd finally gotten the amazingly bright idea to change his outfit. Instead of the orange jumpsuit, he now wore knee-length dark orange shorts and a navy blue t-shirt. His shuriken holster was still on his right leg and his headband secured on his forehead, keeping his unruly hair out of his crystal blue eyes.

Sakura smiled at his enthusiasm. Her hair had grown out a little since she'd cut it; it was now shoulder-length again. She kept most of it out of her pale green eyes with her headband, somewhat like Naruto. Today she wore her usual red 'dress' and blue shorts underneath.

She tucked a strand of pink hair behind her ear as Naruto neared. When he reached her, he glomped her, knocking her off her feet. "Sakura-chan! How are ya?"

"I'm…fine…" she managed to mumble, the wind knocked out of her.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Naruto said, blushing a light pink when he saw he'd nearly killed her. (A/N: Note the sarcasm.) He helped her up and hugged her normally, without knocking her over this time. She hugged him back. "Sorry about that."

"It's okay," Sakura replied, smiling like she was a kid again.

"Am I late? How long have you been here?" Naruto sounded concerned.

_Jeez. He must really care about me…_ thought Sakura.

"Nah, you aren't late. I've only been here about three minutes. Don't worry." She noticed he seemed a little on edge. She poked him in the side and added, "And relax! I don't bite!"

Naruto flinched when he was poked, and started laughing, his way of loosening up situations. "Okay. So where do you want to go, Sakura-chan?"

"Hmmm, I don't know. I thought you were deciding that."

"I thought you were!"

"Okay then…I have an idea. Remember how long you've like me?"

"Yeah, about five years."

_Five years? Dang I'm an idiot!_ thought Sakura, but she didn't say it aloud.

"Well, was there any place you ever wanted to take me reeeeeally bad? Ever since then?"

Naruto thought for a moment, then replied with, "Oh yeah! Now I remember! Follow me! I'll take you there!" He grabbed her hand and started urging her in the direction he wanted to go. She gladly followed him, glad to be holding hands with him after three long years of liking him in secret.

While they ran (don't ask why they're running, they just are), Sakura took some time to think again. She noticed Naruto was taller than her now. Instead of her being an inch or two taller than him, he was now about four inches taller than her. _How did that happen? Must be his growth spurts again…_ She began trying to remember him shorter than her.

She remembered the times when they went on stupid missions when they'd just become Genins. Like finding lost pets, tending gardens, and helping some of the elderly people. Naruto enjoyed helping the elderly the best. _Why did he, anyway? I mean, I thought he'd like finding the pets more. They have more energy than old people…_

"Naruto-kun!" she called, trying to get Naruto's attention.

Naruto stopped in his tracks, shivered, and turned towards Sakura. "Yes, my darling Sakura-chan?"

She smiled inwardly and outwardly when he said the words 'my darling'. Why? She didn't know. She noticed he shivered though. "Uh…why did you just shiver?"

"I'm just not used to you calling me Naruto-kun instead of just Naruto. It made me feel kinda happy, I guess. Sakura smiled again at those words. She hadn't smiled this much since the day that she found out Sasuke-kun was on her team. "So, what did you want to ask me?" Naruto asked, bringing Sakura back to reality.

"Oh! I wanted to know why you like helping the elderly in our missions a few years back more than any of the other missions."

Naruto took a minute to think, then answered. "Because old people have interesting stories to tell. Sure, they can't remember some of the finer details, but it's fun listening to them tell stories of adventures they had as a kid, fights they got into, stuff they did, you know what I mean, right?"

Sakura considered his answer, then said, "I get your logic there…"

Naruto beamed and said, "Cool! Let's keep going!"

They began running again, causing Sakura to keep thinking.

_Because they have interesting stories to tell? That seems like something Hinata-chan would say, not Naruto-kun. Maybe I've just been seeing him wrong for the past couple years._ She looked at Naruto again, and smiled. _And why do I keep smiling! It's now involuntary! … Oh well. I'm just glad he chose me and not someone else. I think Hinata-chan had something for him though. Poor girl. She was always too shy to tell him how she felt. Maybe he would've said yes…but then I would have him right now…_

"—ra…—kura…Sakura!" Naruto brought her back from memory lane yet again! She smelled ramen.

_Figures he'd take me to a ramen shop._ Then she actually looked up and didn't see a ramen shop. She saw a fancy Japanese _restaurant_!

"Wh…wh…" Sakura tried to stammer. Naruto turned to her and grinned.

"Well, I wanted ramen, and I knew you liked something a little more fancy, and this place has both!"

"But how did you…this…this was my favorite restaurant when I was little! How did you know! Err…did you know?"

"Yeah, I knew. I overheard you bringing it up in an argument with Ino a while back."

"I see. Still…I haven't been here is so long…"

"So…" Naruto started, grasping Sakura's hand, causing her to blush (even more to his amusement), "shall we go in?" He held out his free hand, motioning to the door.

"Sure," Sakura said, and followed Naruto into the building.

"Table for two?" asked the orange-haired waitress.

"Yep," Naruto replied, obviously taking care of seating for the two of them.

"Smoking or non-smoking?"

"Non."

"Okay. Right this way, please." They followed the waitress to their table and were seated.

"Can I get you anything to drink?" the waitress asked.

Naruto looked at Sakura. He mouthed the words, 'You order first'.

Sakura was caught off-guard and mouthed back, 'Why me?'.

'Because…you're the girl!'

'Fine.'

"I'll have pink lemonade," Sakura said the waitress. Naruto waited for her to finish making a mental note before he began his request.

"And I'll have a glass of Pepsi."

"Okay. Pink lemonade and a Pepsi coming right up!" The waitress bumbled off to get the drinks and give them time to decide on their meal. Sakura looked at the menu, and after quickly glancing over it, only saw two things she was in the mood for: a bowl of ramen and a side order of gyoza (_Japanese dumplings, also called pot stickers_).

"Have you decided on what you're going to get, Sakura-chan?" Naruto asked politely.

"What did I tell you about the whole politeness thing?" asked Sakura dangerously. She didn't want to truly scare Naruto, but she wanted him to be a little more relaxed around her.

"Sorry about that. Um…What're you gonna get, Sakura-chan?"

"I'm thinking about getting a bowl of ramen and some gyoza."

"Wanna share a bowl?"

"Of ramen?"

"Why not?"

"Uh…okay then. Like you said, why not?"

"And gyoza sounds great. Want some egg rolls too?"

"Can you read minds?"

"Not that I know of…why?"

"Cause you just read mine! Egg rolls sound perfect with ramen and gyoza!"

"Kay then. So we want a bowl of ramen, two spoons, and a side of gyoza and egg rolls?"

"Yep!" Sakura poked her cheek. "Weird…my cheeks feel tired."

"Maybe it's because you've been smiling a lot more than usual today."

"Maybe…"

The waitress arrived back at their table and set their drinks down. The light in the restaurant was slightly dim, and she accidentally placed the Pepsi by Sakura and the pink lemonade by Naruto. After she'd finished, she asked, "So do you need a little more time, or are you ready to order?"

"We're ready to order," Naruto said.

_How sweet_, Sakura thought, _He's taking care of everything for me…Sasuke-kun would've never done that…ARG! Stop thinking about him!_

"Okay, what would you like?"

"We'd like an order of gyoza and egg rolls, and we'd also like to share a large bowl of ramen."

"So gyoza, egg rolls, a bowl of ramen, and two spoons?"

"Yep."

"Okay. This will probably take about twenty minutes to make. Please wait, and I'll bring it out as soon as possible."

"Kay. Thanks!" Naruto called as the waitress walked off.

_No no no no no no! Why do I keep thinking about Sasuke-kun! I'm supposed to be thinking about Naruto-kun! He's the one who's right here beside me, holding my hand, opening doors, and paying for my dinner! Sasuke-kun never did ANYTHING like that! Stop thinking about him, baka!_

Sakura was slumped slightly over while she battled with her inner feelings. Naruto noticed this, and from past observations, knew what she was doing. The last time this happened, though, she nearly drove herself insane arguing with herself. "Better stop her…" Naruto mumbled aloud. "Sakura! Sakura!" he called quietly into her ear, trying to wake her up without disturbing their table neighbors.

Sakura blinked two times, then sat up straighter. "Naruto? Is our food here?" She sounded like she'd had no idea what was going on.

"No. You were just in 'the state'."

"Oh, I'm sorry. And when I'm supposed to be focused on you I go into that state. Omigosh, I'm so sorry Naruto-kun! I—"

Naruto put a finger to her lips, silencing her. "Shh. Don't worry about it. I forgive you. Even if you DO go into that state again, I'll help you out." He gave a reassuring smile to help with the encouragement.

Sakura grinned slightly and muttered back, "Thanks, Naruto-kun."

"I'd do anything for my Sakura-chan!"

Sakura blushed a color close to her hairs when he'd said '_my_ Sakura-chan'. _He's so nice…even though it's kind of odd that he's calling me his when this is our first date… Oh well!_

"So, what're you gonna do now that you're a Chunin, Naruto-kun?" Sakura asked. Usually she'd think she was 'breaking the ice', but she was actually quite comfortable with Naruto.

"Hmm…I haven't really thought about it. I want to be the next Hokage, but I don't know if the people would trust me with the demon fox inside me…"

"Yeah, I guess that'd be a problem… But don't worry. I'll always trust you!" Sakura said, holding up a thumbs-up sign for reassurance.

Naruto smiled at his girlfriend's—and best friend's—enthusiasm at him being the Hokage. "Thanks, Sakura-chan. That helps me more than you know."

"Welcome."

The waitress came up to their table again, smiling. "I guess your food took shorter than expected. How long did I say it'd take? Twenty minutes? Well, thank goodness for you, it only took five!"

"Five minutes!" Naruto exclaimed in amazement. "That's awesome!"

"Sure is. I guess we have a small crowd here tonight. And here's your food, lady and gentleman." She set down the ramen, gyoza, and egg rolls and quickly added, "Can I get you anything else?"

"I'm fine," Sakura said.

"Same. We're fine, thanks," Naruto added.

"Kay. I'll be wandering around serving other people. If you need me, just flag me down."

"Will do," from Naruto. The waitress walked off and left the two to their meal.

Sakura immediately grabbed a gyoza with her chopsticks and slowly chewed it, enjoying the flavor. "So how is it?" asked Naruto.

"It's _great_!" she cried just before grabbing another.

"Cool. You can have mine if you want."

"No, I don't want to take your food!"

"Fine, I'll have one." Naruto took one and looked sadly up at Sakura.

"Eh? What's wrong?"

"Please… Can I have rest?"

Sakura laughed and said, "Sure. I'll have some egg rolls." Once they finished their appetizers, they both looked at the gigantic bowl of ramen.

"So…do you want to have the first bite?" Naruto asked.

"Nah, you can."

"No, you can."

"No, you!"

"It's all right. You can have the first bite."

"Naruto-kun, you have the first bite."

Naruto laughed and said, "Okay, fine! I'll have the first bite!" He wrapped a mouthful of ramen and some of the meat (there was all kinds of meat in it) around his chopsticks, and raised it to his mouth. He opened his mouth, and just before it touched his lips, he shoved the chopsticks into Sakura's mouth. She was so surprised she almost choked, but she ate it.

After she finished with the bite, she glared at Naruto's laughing face and said, "Naruto-kun! You were supposed to have the first bite! Not me!"

Naruto kept laughing and said between laughs, "You…you…you're so funny, Sakura-chan!"

Sakura was again caught off guard, and blushed. But she replaced her blushing face with an evil grin. "Wanna see who can eat the most?"

"You're ON!" Naruto replied, and immediately began gorging himself. Sakura wasn't far behind, though.

While they were speed eating, Naruto looked up at Sakura while downing a mouthful of pork. He thought to himself, _Dang, I didn't think she could EAT that fast! I sure as heck underestimated her…_

Sakura also looked up while chewing on a mouthful of noodles and chicken. _I always knew he could eat fast…but never THIS fast! He's a worthy opponent!_

Within the next ten minutes, the bowl was completely empty, and Naruto and Sakura were leaned back in their chairs, panting and holding their stomachs.

"_That_ was a lot of food…" Sakura stated between breaths.

"I agree… Why did we have that competition again?"

"I dunno…moment of randomness?"

Naruto laughed and said, "Works with me. That was fun!"

"Yeah, same here. I don't think I'm gonna eat for a few meals, though. I'm stuffed!"

"Stuffed doesn't come NEAR to describing what I am."

"Ug… Should we leave?"

"Sure." They both (painfully) got up, Naruto paid, and they walked out of the shop. "Wanna go this way?" Naruto suggested, indicating the direction to the park.

"Sure," she said, grabbing onto Naruto's hand.

Naruto smiled and began walking. They walked in silence for a few minutes, then Naruto said, "So why've you been spacing out so much tonight?"

Sakura twitched. She had not been expecting him to say something about that. _How should I answer? I can't just say I've been thinking about Sasuke-kun half the night… Or can I? No, I couldn't. Arg! What am I gonna do?_

"Sakura?" Naruto asked, looking worried yet again. "You're doing it again…"

"Ack! I'm sorry Naruto-kun. It's just…how should I say this…?"

"Just tell me. I won't get mad."

"You sure?"

"Yes. Even if it involves Sasuke-bastard, I'll still love you."

"That was a little cheesy…"

Naruto laughed. "Yeah, it was. Sorry."

"It's okay."

"You never gave me an answer to my question."

_Yes, I can play dumb!_ Sakura thought.

"What question?"

"Sakura…" Naruto said dangerously.

"Eep!" Sakura squeaked. She wasn't used to Naruto going dangerous on her like that so suddenly. She sighed. "Okay. I'll admit it. I _was_ thinking about Sasuke-kun. I didn't _want_ to, though! I just wanted to be thinking about _you_! Not him!"

Naruto stared at her for a moment, then squeezed her hand. "Don't worry about it. I've been thinking about other things too. It's hard to focus on your date when your mind's somewhere else. I'm victim to wandering as well."

"Really?" Sakura asked with surprised. She didn't think Naruto spaced at all!

_I guess he really DOES space sometimes…_ she thought.

"I get it. Then we're on even terms again?"

"Of course," Naruto said, smiling. He looked up and grinned wider. "Look, we're here!"

Sakura looked up as well and saw the park. Did it look more beautiful than usual today? She remembered it being dirty and dusty from everyone playing on it all the time. Tonight, though, it looked shiny with dew and with the moon shining of everything made it seem almost…romantic? That couldn't be right…

"It looks _beautiful_ tonight!" Naruto shouted to the world.

"Just out of curiosity… Why did you shout that?"

"Cause that way the whole world can tell how happy I am!"

_That's a neat idea… I'll try it some other time. For now, though, I need to stop thinking so much and focus my attention on Naruto-kun!_

Naruto walked over to and sat under tree that had a perfect view of the moon at his angle. He patted the grass next to him, and Sakura sat next to him.

"The moon looks awesome, huh?" suggested Naruto.

"Yeah…" Sakura said dreamily.

Naruto put his arm protectively around Sakura's shoulders. She welcomed the warmth from his arm around her bare shoulders, shielding her from the chills of outside air. She rested her head on his shoulder and he sighed and said, "This was one of the best days ever, huh, Sakura-chan?"

"Yeah, Naruto-kun. It was…"

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A/N: Okay, so that was _really_ cheesy, but sweet. Thanks for reading, and just to let you know, this is the longest single story/chapter of anything I've ever written…as of June 28, 2006 at least! Please review, I enjoy hearing from my readers!

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_**-End-**_


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